In keeping with the Digital Detox trend, it's genuinely good for your mental health when travelling by motorhome or tent not to spend too much time glued to your smartphone or laptop browsing the internet. But if you want to work from anywhere in your VanOffice, you'll need a good internet connection. So how can that work in a camper?

Here at VanSite you'll find not only pitches, but also the best tips and all the options for internet on the road.

Foto von Andrew Neel auf Unsplash |

Internet in vanlife: what are the options?

To always have a good connection on your trips by camper or motorhome, a mobile plan with data usually isn't enough. Abroad in particular, using mobile data can quickly get expensive.

When travelling in Germany or elsewhere in the EU, you can usually browse without extra charges. Even so, poor reception or none at all is no rarity out in nature here at home.

If you depend on a good connection, here you'll find some VanSite pitches with good mobile reception.

Three ways to get online on the road:

• Mobile internet via the mobile network

• Internet via Wi-Fi

• Internet via satellite

Below we take a closer look at the three options. We'll go through all of them and show you how to always have a good connection and browse at low prices.

Foto von Discoversavsat |

Internet in vanlife via the mobile network

One way to get online on your trips without a Wi-Fi router in Germany and the EU is to use the mobile network. Fortunately it's now very well developed and powerful, from 2G and 3G through LTE over 4G all the way to 5G.

If you have to work from your van or need internet on your laptop or tablet for some other reason, you can choose between four ways of using mobile data:

• LTE stick (without a contract from 20 €)

• mobile LTE router (without a contract from 40 €)

• permanently installed LTE router (from 150 €)

• your smartphone's hotspot (from 6 €)

If you go for the cheapest option (a hotspot with your smartphone), make sure to pick a plan with enough data. When choosing a plan, be sure to check that the automatic data top-up can be switched off, otherwise you may face hidden charges.

Here's an estimate of usage for different needs:

• Sending messages and browsing: 3-5 gigabytes per month (from 6 €)

• Moderate streaming and browsing: 5-10 gigabytes per month (from 10 €)

• Frequent streaming, Instagram and YouTube: 10-20 gigabytes a month (from 15 €)

• Heavy mobile use: unlimited data per month (from 30 €)

Tip for non-EU countries: If you're travelling in your van in a country outside the EU and need constant internet access, it's worth buying a SIM card locally.

Image by Christin Hume on Unsplash |

Internet in vanlife via Wi-Fi

If you're travelling with your camper or van in areas with poor mobile coverage, or you want to browse as cheaply as possible, you should fall back on Wi-Fi. That said, this option ties you to specific places.

On the road you'll get Wi-Fi, if at all, only here:

• Campsites

• Cafés and restaurants

• Fast-food chains

• Shopping centres and petrol stations

• Hotspots on public streets

• VanSite pitches with Wi-Fi

Reception problems are common, though, and you have no control over the signal strength or the times the Wi-Fi network is active. So you're better off using one of the following options.

Options for browsing and working with Wi-Fi in vanlife:

• Battery-powered Wi-Fi repeater to boost a signal (from 30 €)

• Wi-Fi amplifier made specifically for campers (from 150 €)

• Vehicle antenna for motorhomes (from 250 €)

Hardly anyone can afford that, right? In fact, using Wi-Fi on the road is still really expensive and not very efficient when you depend on the Wi-Fi of public places.

Foto von Johnson Wang |

Internet in vanlife via satellite

On your trips by van or camper you can receive internet, as well as television, by satellite too, but for that you need a satellite dish with an LNB receiving unit. Sounds complicated, and it is, because everything also has to be wired up and a roof feed-through has to be installed.

This option therefore has a few key drawbacks:

• Frequent reception problems

• High purchase and installation costs (price: from about 3,400 euros)

• Limited choice of location due to possible signal interference

The only advantages of internet in a van via satellite:

• Internet use worldwide in theory

• Steady monthly price (from 30 €)

• Usable without mobile reception

Our verdict on internet while travelling

There are plenty of ways to browse the internet or work remotely while travelling by camper or motorhome. Before you decide, though, you should ask yourself these questions:

• How independent do I want to be when it comes to internet reception?

• How much money can and do I want to spend on internet in the van?

• How much data do I use for what I do?

We think tethering through a smartphone's mobile network is the most affordable and reliable option. If you want to be completely sure your internet won't let you down, go for a SIM card plan with the following specs (around 50 € per month):

• Unlimited data

• High transfer rate (around 300 Mbit/s download)

• EU flat rate for calls, SMS and data

• A provider with good network coverage